Nowadays it’s really easy to snap a quick picture. With smartphones allowing you to carry a camera in your pocket, you can take photos anywhere and share them online.

However, if you want to learn more about photography than simply how to line up the best selfie, you could benefit from taking a course with Kent Adult Education.

We have a number of photography courses available for all abilities, allowing you to get to grips with your camera, develop your skills and even make a career out of your photos.

To find out more about why a photography course is such a good idea for those with an interest in the subject, we caught up with one of our tutors and professional photographer John Migden.

“Photographer and course tutor John Migden told us why he thinks photography is such a great subject to learn about”

John first developed his interest in photography during his undergraduate degree. Although he was studying film, there was a photography module that peaked his interest. This was further developed through the fact that his father was an amateur photographer.

However, his love for photography didn’t develop past the hobby stage until he was lucky enough to take a couple of years out to travel. This allowed him to visit different countries and capture them on film.

John soon found that he could fund his travels by selling slides of his adventures to libraries back home. He continued doing this after he returned home, working with libraries and agencies to create a range of images.

He describes photography as a way of “recording life as you go through it, but also recording the world for other people to see.” In fact, he says that this is a hugely important part of photography as a whole.

In the end, it was this that sent John back to university in order to study photography, introducing him to more of its history, which he finds incredibly interesting.

As well as allowing you to take great photos, John says that photography “is a ticket to see the world but also to explore it. It’s kind of an excuse to go and put yourself into situations and to force yourself to have experiences that you maybe wouldn’t otherwise have.” For John, this is the second important aspect about photography.

He now specialises in documentary photos, enjoying candid shots of people and places. However, he is also a partner in a commercial photography company, although he doesn’t do much of that kind of work himself.

John has had his work, as well as articles about photography, published throughout his career.

When it comes to photography courses with Kent Adult Education, John says that they are a good idea for a number of reasons.

For starters, you are likely to make long-term friends with others on the course because of your shared love of photography. You’ll meet a lot of like-minded individuals who will help you on your journey.

In fact, some of John’s students have gone on to form camera clubs of their own, going so far as to organise trips abroad in order to take photos.

As well as this, John said that “photography encompasses so many other subjects. There’s some mathematics involved as well as the more creative and artistic elements.” A course can help you balance all of these areas and understand them better.

He also stressed the importance of the historical aspects of photography that you’ll learn about. You’ll be exposed to other people’s work and learn about the development of photography, both of which will help to “open up your horizons”.

John continued to say that the courses are designed to give people, no matter what their level, the information and knowledge to progress to the next stage, whatever you may choose that to be.

While some students have finished a course feeling happy that they can competently use their camera, others have gone on to get published and to pursue photography as a career.

Before you start a course with Kent Adult Education, John stressed the importance of fully reading all the information about it. This is to ensure that you are on the right course and that you have the correct equipment.

If you have the right camera and an interest in photography, he said you should just come along and see if it is right for you.

If you feel that you want to get a bit more prepared before a course, John suggests having a look at other people’s work so you can see what is being produced. This will help you to understand the type of photographer you want to be and allow you to set realistic and attainable goals. The course will then give you all the technical information and support you need to achieve your goals.

He also said it is important to understand that beginners courses really are for beginners, in that you don’t need to know anything. This means you don’t have to worry about having any prior photography knowledge.

The advanced courses will then help to give you focus and support you while you fully define yourself as a photographer.

Of course, the thing that John said is most important is to simply enjoy yourself.

If you fancy learning more about photography, why not sign up for a course with us?